The Tall Senior's Teasing

The gallery post title read: "What does this stream title even mean?"

"I can't do it."

Chell said that right before dinner.

"You can't do it? The cleaning and dishes afterward are your job, you know."

"I can't make Laura cry."

Ah, so that was what she meant. For the record, Chell was the type who handled housework normally. If you asked her to do something, she'd just do it quietly. Rion was diligent and resourceful. Sora had no particular knack for it but cooked well. Inagika, for some reason, liked cleaning the bathroom, and Chell was bad at cooking but meticulous with cleaning and organizing. As for Anna, she truly couldn't do anything.

'She's practically living here at this point.'

Lately Chell had been coming over every single day. Today she was planning to sleep over again. Actually, the phrase "sleep over" might not even fit anymore. She might not return to her own place even after tomorrow arrived. She was less a guest now and more like a permanent freeloader. Rion also had plenty of days without remote work. Chell herself must have felt awkward about staying at my place, because she had started volunteering for housework. Once I started piling on all sorts of odd jobs, she had begun to feel like family lately. Sora had stayed during the Chuseok holiday, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Chell had been here even longer.

"Tomorrow we'll watch Sanrabi," Chell said after thinking it over.

"Sanrabi will make you cry."

That was her goal.

"But you do realize that the more you say things like that, the less the tears come? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It honestly feels like you're making a fuss."

"Ah."

Chell let out a small sigh. "Sanrabi isn't moving. Laura will never cry."

"You should study sarcasm a bit more. Still, why are you so determined to make me cry?"

That had been my question all along. When I asked, Chell tilted her head instead.

"Because I want to see it?"

"You have terrible hobbies."

"……"

Chell narrowed her eyes, a rare occurrence. She looked like she wanted to ask, 'Are you really one to talk?' She was probably referring to how I'd enjoyed my black tea while watching Rion cry during Clannad. That had been unavoidable. Because I'm a villainess, after all. Watching someone else's crying face makes black tea and macarons taste better.

'Maybe Chell was a villainess in the past too?'

Villainesses liked seeing other people cry. I liked seeing other people cry, and Chell wanted to see my tears. Therefore Chell might also be a villainess like me. That was a reasonable conclusion, but upon closer inspection there was one flaw in the reasoning. Even ordinary people with normal tastes wanted to see my tears. Wanting to see an unparalleled beauty cry was an extremely common preference. I had never cried in over ten years, but one didn't need a calculator to know that my tears would be worth their weight in gold. In that case, it would be more accurate to say Chell was trying to make me cry for financial reasons. She was quite the miser.

"All the other sixth-generation members have cried already," Chell said, breaking her silence to defend herself while I was thinking.

All the other sixth-generation members?

"Sora cried at the tournament the other day. You cried too. What about Inagika?"

"She cried."

With that, Chell showed me a broadcast archive.

"She cried, didn't she?"

"She certainly did cry. But the timing feels different, doesn't it?"

She had even cried from episode one. Maybe episode eight or the finale would make sense, but was there really a crying point in episode one? This was ridiculous.

"That just leaves Laura. So let's watch Sanrabi."

"Hmm."

It felt like she would keep clinging to me until I cried. This body didn't even feel like yawning. I was so healthy that I rarely even felt fatigue. At this rate, the only solution really was to poke my own eyes. But me stabbing my own eyes? That didn't feel right. It would be too undignified for a noble lady.

"We should watch Sanrabi later."

Just as I was concluding that artificial tears would be the fastest method, Rion suddenly cut in.

"Oh my, Rion. You're back."

Rion was still in her suit, apparently having just returned from the company. The formal attire suited her diligent image quite well.

"I'm glad Chell's here too. Work came in for both you and my sister."

"Work?"

"It looks like the two of you will need to do voice recording."

"Voice recording, is it."

It wasn't particularly surprising. I had done voice work with Sora once before. What caught my attention was something else.

"Just the two of us? What about the others?"

"Several other EYEAI VTubers are participating. Eight in total."

"When I said 'others,' I meant the sixth-generation members."

"Ah…. Inagika and Sora? They'll get their turn next time."

Rion continued, "It's a bit unexpected, isn't it? Why were those two excluded?"

"I don't know how other companies do it, but at our company they're splitting the sixth generation in two because it'll sell better that way."

"Is that so?"

"There are only so many people who can participate in the voice event anyway."

There were about twenty VTubers under EYEAI. Each voice line cost ten thousand won. In other words, if all twenty participated, viewers would have to pay two hundred thousand won each. But of course that wasn't how it worked. Two hundred thousand won was far too expensive.

"In reality it doesn't work like that. Two hundred thousand won is too much money."

Watching VTuber streams was free by default. However, being a dedicated fan wasn't free. You had to buy official merchandise, and paid events cost money too. Some tickets apparently went for a hundred thousand won. So even if all twenty participated, few people would buy everything. Between event tickets, merchandise, donations, and memberships, fans had to budget carefully.

"That's why they're only releasing eight voices. Two hundred thousand won is too burdensome, but there are people willing to spend around eighty thousand won."

Whether the price crossed the hundred-thousand-won line made a real difference in accessibility. Buying all eight as a set also came with a slight discount, bringing the price to roughly seventy-five thousand won. The composition of the set mattered, and Rion explained that including four sixth-generation members out of eight might make it feel cheap.

"A set needs variety to look appealing, right? And even though the sixth generation is doing well, the seniors naturally have a thicker existing fanbase. We can't fill it with only sixth-generation members."

"I see. I understand."

"And……there are various other circumstances."

Rion let out a small sigh.

"So tomorrow both of you need to go record voices. Sanrabi can wait."

The next day, Rion drove Chell and me to the recording site. If there was anything I had forgotten, it was that Chell and I were still relatively new VTubers who had only recently debuted. That meant we had a senior to guide us. And on top of that—

"Mom, hello!"

That was both our first meeting and her first line.

Among women I was on the taller side, yet I still had to look up. Long, slender legs. Hair that must have been difficult to maintain reached down to her waist. Or perhaps it was simply ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠proof that she didn't bother maintaining it properly. VTubers could earn money without meeting people if they wanted to. That was probably why her hair was so long. She was already tall to begin with. Was she trying to evoke that internet-famous eight-foot ghost?

"How tall are you?"

"One hundred eighty."

"And the last digit?"

"You'll get hurt if you find out!"

She was tall but her limbs were quite thin. I was almost worried whether she was eating properly. Still, her height gave her a naturally imposing presence. Chell was clearly intimidated and had pressed herself right up against my back.

"Ainatsu."

If there was anything else I had forgotten, it was that Ainatsu was my senior. When I called her name, she grinned.

"We've still got time. Want to head to the district ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠office first? They give out adult adoption papers there."

Ainatsu started spouting nonsense in a perfectly calm voice.